Smoothies

I know that these are nothing new but I love a smoothie for breakfast. I've been experimenting with ways to get more protein in them and other essential vitamins so that it can last longer in my tummy.

Some of my favourite recipes are:

Choco-Banana-P.B.

I put in 1 banana, 1 cup chocolate soy milk and 1 tbsp of peanut butter... blend and drink!! Add some ice cubes if you want it be a milkshake.

Banana-Berry

One banana, a cup of berries of your choice, 1 cup of plain Turkish (Greek style) yogurt... blend and drink. If the berries are frozen it's super yummy!!

Banana-Nectar etc

One banana, one cup of berries of your choice, 1/2 cup of plain yogurt, 1/2 cup apricot nectar... blend with some ice and drink!!


So those are three recipes I've enjoyed. I've even thrown in some frozen spinach in the bottom two from time to time to get some of those precious vitamins from the dark leafy greens and it doesn't change the taste at all!! It's a great day starter, natural, tasty and good for you! I'd love to hear what some of your favourite smoothie recipes are so I can add them to my repertoire!

Bandwagons and Knee Scrapes

That's what I am going through right now. I don't like to think of new exercise or eating habits as being on a bandwagon, but I tend to make them that way when I slip out of the good habits and into the bad... and that is where the knee scrapes come in. I slip off the "bandwagon" of being good and it hurts. It doesn't hurt anyone but myself, so you would think that I would learn, but I'm kinda slow with that too. Lately, I've been eating all the things I promised myself that I would not eat. I've also been lazy about getting up early to work out. *sigh* I've lost my motivation... or at least I thought I had and then I caught a glimpse of myself in a mirror and yes, I saw all the fat and things that I don't like but that isn't what made me resolve to hop back on this crazy but great ride... it was seeing that I have worth and beauty but that it is sadly locked behind other things that I CAN change... so here I am, putting bandages on the knee scrapes and climbing back on the wagon. Let's hope I can do a little better this time... for myself!

Golden Strawberries

In my search for things that work and that help to clean out my system, I've come across something called a Golden Strawberry here in Turkey. They sell them in diet pill format (which I am currently trying) and fresh (when in season) and dried (year round). The benefits are meant to be that they clean your blood from toxins, are diuretic, boost your metabolism etc. They are very high in vitamin C and are supposed to be good for your skin and immune system. The dangers would be the diuretic part as keeping water in your system can be hard if you have too many of the berries or take too many of the pills. The berries are sour in taste but I kind of like them. After using the pill form for a couple of weeks, I'm not seeing a great big difference in my size but I am noticing that I'm a whole LOT more regular... hehe I think I'd rather just used the dried berries as part of a trail mix, in baking and on salads. Interesting way to detox and diet... and totally natural. Something to think about!

Surprises

So it's been a little while since I completed the detox part of this little adventure in discovering how to be healthy. I've made some very interesting discoveries during that time that surprised me a lot. Here are a few:

1. Some foods that held my tastebuds and fat hostage I don't really like that much anymore. I cooked a big Thai meal and some friends brought over tortilla chips (I know... so not a match, but they were Turkish boys and well... you just can't blame them for trying) which used to be a favourite snacky thing for me and that I would refuse to buy because I couldn't stop myself from eating them... well, I had a couple that evening and was shocked to find out that I didn't really like them any more. Sure one or two was nice and then I was bored of them.... WOOHOO!!!! Another one is the bread rolls they make at school... not a big fan of them anymore.

2. I prefer a salad for lunch EVERYDAY now. Even when they have a great lunch on the menu at school, I hanker for that salad with some boiled eggs on top and plain yogurt for dressing.

3. I CAN and AM ABLE to stop eating! Before, I'd eat until whatever in front of me was done... now I eat and when I feel full or satiated, I just stop, push it away and feel great about it.

4. I LOVE LOVE LOVE being active. This wasn't a huge surprise to me, but HOW MUCH I like it was. YAH!! Can't wait to step it up a notch...

5. I'm loving who I am more and more... oh... and another 1/2 inch is gone from the waist! YAH!!

So the detox is what I needed and I am thrilled with the results. I may even do a 3 day revisit to it this coming week just to cleanse out after a little too much celebrating different going aways and events with friends the last 2 weekends.

The Day After....

So detox has ended and I've made my decision as to how to approach phase 2 of this thing. And here is what it will look like:

I will continue to avoid white rice, white bread and junk food. I will also try to find a way to be active at least once a day, every day! So far, I am able to do that and sometimes twice a day which is awesome.

Yesterday I had coffee for the first time in 10 days and it was DELICIOUS!! I also had cheese and chocolate (small quantities) and it was lovely. I still found myself eating salad for lunch and continuing with smaller portions because my body required less... And I am maintaining the eating of small portions 4-6 times a day, which is key for the smaller portions. I also still find myself drawn to more fruits and veggies. I am loving how this is more than a 9 day detox, it feels like a life change!! <3

LAST DAY!!!!

It is my final day of the first phase of detox!! I feel like a huge success and I'll tell you why... the diet demons were in full strength today. I started out the day fine, feeling good and happy. I even just about ended the day feeling that way but then I stayed after work to work on report cards and that's when the chocolate and cookies that my teammate and I keep on the shelf started calling my name. I even let the thought of "you're almost done, what's the big deal?" run through my mind before I stood up for myself, shut up the diet demons and changed for volleyball. And that is SUCCESS, my friends!

Here is how today went down:

5:30 AM - 45 minute walk (did I mention that I hate early mornings? But I will say that today was gorgeous)

Breakfast: 2 egg whites scrambled with a few capers and garlic, 1 tomato

Snack: 1 grapefruit

Lunch: 1 1/2 cups green salad and 1 1/4 cups cacik (you will remember this as the yogurt, cucumber mint soup from a previous entry I hope).

Snack: 2/3 cup of fruit salad

Dinner: 1 cup of brown rice/lentils/bulgur. I guess this is my splurge meal... maybe.

PM - 1 hour of volleyball and I found myself feeling lighter and more interested in getting the ball... so I was more active. It was GREAT!

So for my last day, I think it went well.

I may continue to blog my intake and workouts daily for a while but we will see... my goal was to do the 9 days successfully and I think I did it. From here, the next goal is to get running 3 times a week as I train for the Istanbul Marathon 8 KM race in October. I would also like to do a detox day once a week and may even give fasting once a month a try as I know it can be super beneficial physically, mentally and spiritually.

Measurements!!!

Okay... so I measured myself this morning and I was wishing I had a scale. Although, I told myself from the beginning that losing weight would be a bonus to this process, not the end goal. Feeling better internally and externally are the goals and I am achieving those on the daily. Here are the new measurements:

Bust: 44 " (no change)

Ribcage: 35" (loss of 1 inch)

Waist: 42" (loss of 1 inch)

Hips: 49" (no change)

So no big changes so far, unless you want to count that my body feels lighter, my clothes fit better, my mood is brighter, my skin is breaking out (toxins coming out), and that I just FEEL healthier, happier and more motivated! ;) Today is the last day of the initial detox phase... the daily intake entry will come later and then I am hoping to see how closely I can stick to phase 2 of this adventure (adding in proteins, cheese and more dairy... still no bread, sweets or things like that) as I was eyeing the special fun Italian pretzels that my friends brought last night. But that was a diet demon and I talked myself off the ledge so to speak. So hear goes nothing as I transition from phase 1 to phase 2!

Thanks for the encouragement and support... it helps to keep me going and helps me to feel like I am making great strides forward in my new year's goal of being the best version of myself that I can be! Keep reading!!!